Squirrel Hill Health Center Continues to Make an Indelible Impact by Providing Services to Neighbors, Old and New

“The phone number—412-422-7442—that, I would remember forever,” Trofimova said. “The next morning, I found myself right over there, instantly surrounded by friendly professionals.” She was welcomed by Marian Allen, DrNP, and Susan J. Dirks, MD, who opened the doors of SHHC and arranged essential care for her family on a sliding-scale basis. “They paved the path for my entire family to be taken care of,” she reflects.

Overcoming the significant obstacles faced by stateless individuals who fled the USSR, Svetlana—a neurologist—and her husband, a mathematician, began rebuilding their lives in Pittsburgh. Inspired by the compassion she found at SHHC; she began volunteering there. She used her time to support SHHC’s immigrant community, translating for patients who, like her, faced language barriers and cultural challenges.

In the years that followed, Trofimova’s connection to SHHC deepened. She was nominated to serve on its Board of Directors, an honor she accepted with humility.

“I don’t think that back then I fully realized how lucky and privileged I was to serve as a Board member on behalf of the patients,” she said. “But I definitely shared the philosophy that the key to success is to go to the roots, to ground zero, to understand patients’ health concerns from their own perspective.”

Her time on the Board was transformative. She recalls discussions among Board members including SHHC CEO Susan Friedberg Kalson and SHHC then Chair of the Board Chuck Cohen of Cohen & Grigsby about SHHC’s expansion, launching a mobile health unit, and integrating behavioral health into primary care. She was profoundly influenced by their commitment to patient-centered care.

“The Board’s sensitivity to patients’ needs and trust in their voices shaped my understanding of equitable health care,” she says. This experience gave her a lasting perspective on the impact of cultural differences, economic hardship, and food insecurity on patients’ health.

After overcoming hurdles to practice medicine in the U.S., Svetlana received her green card and pursued a Master of Physician Assistant Studies degree at Chatham University, graduating at 48. She joined the University of Pittsburgh’s Department of Neurological Surgery at the Center for Image-Guided Neurosurgery, working with Dr. Dade Lunsford in Gamma Knife radiosurgery, where she treats brain tumors, essential tremors, AVMs and other complex conditions.

Today, Svetlana continues to uphold the values she found at SHHC, both in her work and as a preceptor for PA students that are coming from different passes. Reflecting on SHHC’s role in her journey, she acknowledges its life-changing support: “I found out that a sense of being socially accepted and maintaining psychological well-being at any immigration stage is no less important than physical health,” she explains. “SHHC supported both my professional development and personal integration. It’s such a joy to eventually be able to give back to those in vulnerable situations.”

A Legacy of Inclusive Health Care: SHHC’s Mission and Origins

Susan Friedberg Kalson, CEO of SHHC, speaks of its foundation as a space “for refugees and immigrants” and lauds it as one of the most diverse patient populations of any FQHC in the country. An inscription on SHHC’s website captures its mission: “The Squirrel Hill Health Center provides the highest quality care to everyone in our community, regardless of income level or insurance status.”

The vision that became SHHC began with JHF.With roots in Montefiore Hospital, which served Pittsburgh’s Jewish community and opened its doors to all patients facing discrimination, JHF set out to bridge the gap left when Montefiore’s community health clinics closed. Endowed in 1990 with the proceeds from Montefiore’s sale, JHF was tasked with sustaining the hospital’s legacy of equitable, community-focused care.

In 2001, federal funding for FQHCs expanded, and JHF applied to establish one to serve the underserved in Squirrel Hill and surrounding neighborhoods—particularly families whose cultural, religious and linguistic heritage required special attention. The application process spanned three years and hundreds of typewritten pages, with JHF staff working tirelessly to win approval. Finally, in 2006, the center received federal grant funding, allowing it to open and see its first patient— the great-niece and great-nephew of JHF Chief Operating Officer and Chief Program Officer Nancy Zionts, MBA, who received their well-baby visits after immigrating from Israel to Pittsburgh.

“We developed the program, invested nearly $1 million with additional support from foundations and community organizations, and gave it to the community. This was a practical way to connect our Montefiore roots to the community. As a Foundation, we could take the risk, and it has exceeded our expectations,” Zionts said.

SHHC Chief Medical Officer Jonathan Weinkle, MD reiterated that while it was always the Center’s mission to do the work it performs today, that mission has evolved to the point where SHHC has become known as the location to receive medical care for refugees arriving from anywhere in the world to the Pittsburgh region.

“We’re the experts. It comes from having clinicians who understand the unique health challenges and social challenges of these populations; it helps having staff who have developed the expertise, workflows, and broader community relationships focused on this kind of work,” Weinkle said.

Fondly remembering Svetlana and her story, Dr. Weinkle says the joy of the work is that her story isn’t a one-off.

“I can think of people I have taken care of as teenagers who are in medical school or in practice. It’s a real win for us to see people who have gone from being our patients to our staff – at all levels – from volunteer to receptionists to medical assistants, and in various other capacities,” Dr. Weinkle said. “When many of our patients go on to nursing school, medical school, or pharmacy school, a lot of them will name a clinician at Squirrel Hill Health Center as inspiring them to pursue a career in medicine.”